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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  2. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  3. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  4. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  5. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  6. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  7. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  8. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  9. I'll be taking the ________________.
  10. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  11. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  12. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  13. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  14. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  15. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  16. The water is too ________________.
  17. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  18. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. cold — the Cold War
  2. drill — a practice
  3. toast — the most admired
  4. tube — in a tire
  5. drill — army training
  6. tube — a container
  7. cold — an illness
  8. dip — to dunk
  9. tube — the underground
  10. lean — to bend
  11. lean — thin
  12. toast — a drink to someone
  13. dip — to sink
  14. dip — a sauce
  15. toast — bread
  16. cold — not warm
  17. drill — the tool
  18. lean — to rest against

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com